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Secondary sourcePainting1867

The Funerals of Inca Atahualpa

Luis Montero · 1867

A grand 1867 history painting showing Pizarro's conquest reaching its grim conclusion, as Atahualpa's mourning wives interrupt the dead emperor's funeral.

The painting depicts the aftermath of Atahualpa's execution, ordered by Pizarro, as remembered by later Peruvians.

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A large painting of a dim stone interior where a body wrapped in red lies on a green-draped bier, surrounded by clergy in white and black robes, armored soldiers, and a crowd of grieving people, some kneeling or collapsed on the floor. A black banner with a skull and crossbones hangs at right, and a gold candlestick stands in front.
Luis Montero, The Funerals of Inca Atahualpa, 1867. Lima Art Museum.

About this source

What it is

This large academic painting was made by the Peruvian artist Luis Montero in 1867, based on descriptions from historian William H. Prescott. It depicts the funeral of the Inca emperor Atahualpa and was commissioned by the Peruvian government for the 1867 Exposition Universelle in Paris. It is now held at the Lima Art Museum.

Why it matters

Painted centuries after Pizarro's conquest, the work shows how 19th-century Peru chose to remember the end of the Inca Empire: as a tragedy, with grieving mourners surrounding Atahualpa's body. The painting traveled widely before being looted during the War of the Pacific and later returned to Peru.

Look closer

  • Why might a 19th-century Peruvian artist choose to depict mourning rather than battle?
  • What does the painting suggest about how later generations judged the conquest?
  • Whose point of view does the painting seem to take—Spanish or Inca?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Francisco Pizarro and Atahualpa on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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